Grain-Free Spaghetti Night with a Tuscan Twist

We’ve been trying to cut back on the carbs and grains around here lately. I can truly tell a difference when I have them and when I don’t. I gave up all grains and carbs for a few weeks, and have slowly been having a few here and there. Mainly because 100 % grain-free is HARD! But, I do feel so much better when I don’t eat them. I have way more energy, I sleep better and I’m less bloated. I’ve lost almost 10 pounds, I feel better and my skin is more clear. (of course, my husband has lost closer to 15 pounds! What the heck?!)

I mean. It’s great. But, making meals can be a challenge. Grilled cheese, pizza, pasta and sandwiches are just SOOO easy! Meal planning takes even more thought, now. And many old favorites have left the rotation all together.

Until now! I discovered a way to bring back Spaghetti Night to our house and it’s AMAZING! I bought a simple spiral slicer, like this one and it has changed the way I do pasta!!

Because, honestly, pasta hasn’t got much taste. So, why waste precious calories on it? It’s really the sauce that’s the star of the show! I though, why not use zucchini “pasta” and dress it up with some really fabulous sauce!? Well, that’s just what I did and it was a huge hit in my house. It’s made it to the weekly menu.

The kids and I headed to Kroger and perused the sauce shelves. So many choices! I love that Kroger is sponsoring a ‘Taste of Italy®’ program in their stores right now (until October 11th). This program offers shoppers a simple and delicious way to use the classic Bertolli® taste that you love for a range of culinary applications.

(My kids just love that Kroger has little carts!)

Dang, don’t let those things hit your heels!

We chose Bertolli® Tomato and Basil pasta sauce which was a great choice for my dish. It’s a slightly spicy, thick and delicious Tuscan Inspired sauce, which was perfect on our “pasta”.

What you need:

2-3 good sized firm zucchini

A spiral slicer

1 lb ground meat (optional)

Bertolli® Tomato and Basil sauce

Parmesan cheese (optional)

What you do:

Spiral slice your zucchini into spaghetti shaped strands.

Brown the ground beef in a skillet over medium high. Adding the meat is optional. You can make the dish grain-free and vegetarian by omitting it, but we were hungry and decided to use the ground beef that night. It could even be vegan if you also omitted the cheese! Talk about versatile.

Add the sauce to the ground beef and bring up to temperature.

Steam the zucchini strands for about a minute in the microwave. You don’t want them cooked. Just steamed and still crunchy. Like al dente’ pasta.

Add the zucchini to each place, top with sauce and meat mixture and a sprinkle of cheese.

Eat it up!

Don’t feel overly full and sleepy, since you DIDN’T eat pasta!! 🙂

Bertolli® really provided the perfect base for my unique take on spaghetti night and the intense flavor of the sauce brought my dish to the next level. Their Tuscan- Inspired sauces are just what you need for giving a twist to a classic or unique dish.